Head Over Heels In Love?
by AquariusSunshine22
Summary: Sarah Malfoy transfers to Hogwarts in her 6th year, and becomes best friends with Lily. After what happened between Lily and Severus at the end of the previous year, he's not the most popular guy around. What will happen when Sarah falls for him? Snape/OC
1. Chapter 1

Chapter 1: Conscience

- September 1, 1976 -

"Bye, Darling!" Her mother's voice trailed off as the train sped up and it left the station. It was a wonder her mother had even gotten to take Sarah to board the train anyway, since she was usually almost always as busy as her father was.

Sarah nervously turned away from the window, and whisked her blonde hair out of her face. She would be starting at Hogwarts as a 6th year, but before that point, Sarah went to Beauxbatons. Of course, she was leaving behind several friends, but at least Hogwarts was closer to their London mansion. According to her parents, the Malfoy's, Sarah should finish her last years at Hogwarts, where they believed she would receive a better education.

Sarah walked along the compartment halls, looking for a seat. She stopped at one that wasn't full yet, noticing that all the members looked to be around her age.. There were two black haired twin girls, a girl with green eyes and bright red hair, and another girl with brown hair.

She slid open the compartment door and tried not to sound too awkward: "Hi…Um, can I sit with you?"

"Sure," they replied kindly. One of the twins with black hair did introductions. "I'm Zaria, and this is my sister Amanda." She pointed at the girl with red hair and green eyes. "This is Lily, and Bridget." They all looked up and smiled at her.

"Nice to meet you…I'm Sarah. Are you in your 6th years, too?" she asked, while sitting down on one of the red leather benches.

"Yeah, we're all 6th years here. Are you transferring this year or something?" The other twin, Amanda, had asked the question.

"My parents made me transfer from Beauxbatons," Sarah replied grimly.

"That sucks…But I'm sure you'll like Hogwarts," the girl called Bridget said.

"I'm sure I will if I get into Slytherin," Sarah sighed.

"Why, has your whole family been in Slytherin or something?" Zaria asked. "Oh! You must be Lucius' younger sister. He told us all last year that you would be transferring. I'm in Slytherin too, so he and I kind of knew each other."

"Yes, I'm his sister…Don't worry, we don't really agree on most things." Sarah saw the looks of hesitation coming from the others in the compartment at the mention of her brother. He knew how blood-prejudiced he could be. "What houses are the rest of you in?'

"Hufflepuff," said Amanda.

"Ravenclaw," said Bridget.

"Gryffindor," said Lily.

"Wow, well at least I'll have someone I know in my house no matter what I get into." Sarah smiled, trying to hide her surprise that four girls from four completely different houses could be close friends. Growing up in the Malfoy family casted a shadow of impossibility on such actions.

For the rest of the train ride, Sarah found herself having the time of her life. Could she have really found her niche already, on the very first day? She certainly hoped so…making friends had been so much harder at Beauxbaton's, where everyone seemed to prefer gossip over meaningful conversations.

Finally, the train arrived, and Sarah got her first glimpse of the magnificent castle.

"Well…I guess I'll see you guys later," she waved at them as they boarded the carriages and reluctantly followed the first years for the sorting. They all gave her strange looks once they reached the toasty entrance hall. She was short for her age, but still noticeably the odd one out with a developed chest and lips donning pink lipstick.

They began walking into the Great Hall, and Sarah nervously exchanged glances with Amanda, who was sitting at the Hufflepuff table on her left. Then she turned to face the Sorting Hat. Lucius had told her about the Sorting: they placed it on your head, and you went to the house table it told you to go to. Pretty simple.

The ceremony dragged on, and finally they were at the bottom half of the alphabet of last names. When the professor called, "Sarah Malfoy," she felt her face turn red.

Time seemed to freeze, as everyone began looking at her expectantly. The Sorting Hat mumbled in her ears, but she was too nervous to listen to what it was saying. Over at the Gryffindor table, she saw Lily, and some rowdy boys; four, including Sirius Black who she was apparently related to through her brother's marriage to Narcissa.

She sat for a few more moments, while the hat pondered. "I'll have to put you in…Slytherin!" Sarah sighed with relief, glad her turn was over and that her family would be proud of her house. She hurried over to sit by Zaria, as the hall applauded.

"Congrats," she smiled as Sarah sat down next to her.

"Yeah, welcome to Slytherin," a boy with brown hair and matching eyes said.

"Thanks…You have no idea how good it feels to get that over with," Sarah sighed.

"Oh Sarah, this is Jake Mulciber," she gestured to the brown-haired boy across the table. She continued, pointing at the boy next to Jake, "This is Martin Avery," she pointed again, at the spot next to Martin, "And that's Severus Snape."

Severus was the only one who didn't look up when Zaria introduced them. Sarah greeted the first two boys and they turned back to the sorting. She looked at Snape expectantly, and sighed, agitated that he still didn't look up.

Zaria whispered while the boys' backs were still turned, "Please don't mention that I talk to Martin to Lily or Bridget…"

"Why not?" Sarah asked.

"She thinks they're horrible people…Also, they're friends with Snape." Sarah must've had a puzzled expression on her face, because Zaria added, "I'll explain later."

Sarah nodded, still confused, but finally tuned into the headmaster's speech.

Later, after the feast, Zaria walked with Sarah to the common room. Sarah had begun shivering once they hit the dungeon, and didn't stop until they got to the common room. It wasn't the luxury of Beauxbatons, but Sarah had to admit that the common room was pretty impressive with the huge stone fireplace on one wall and the many talking portraits that lined the others.

They walked up the stairs into the girl's dorms, and Sarah went over to the bed where her trunks had been set.

After unpacking all her belongings, and being introduced to Maggie Parkinson and Lillie Smith, Sarah brought up the conversation Zaria began at dinner. "So fill me in about the whole 'Snape' fiasco."

"Well first…I think it's really nice that you don't care about blood status or anything like that. I mean, I know how the Malfoy family is…""

Sarah didn't really know what to say to the comment. "Well we aren't all horrible. Maybe just the majority."

Zaria laughed. "So on with the story…After O.W.L.'s last year, Snape was sitting in the grass looking over the test, and Lily, Amanda, and I were all cooling off in the lake. James Potter, Remus Lupin, Peter Pettigrew, and Sirius Black- I'm sure you'll meet them eventually- were all sitting under the birch tree. James was apparently getting bored, so they went over and started casting all these spells on Severus, trying to show off to everyone, as usual. Lily had been friends with him since they were nine, so we got out of the water and Lily started yelling at James. He's been trying to go out with her for centuries, so of course, he said that he'd leave Severus alone if she went out with him. She refused, calling him names which I won't mention, and eventually got James to leave him alone anyway. But instead of being appreciative, all Severus said was 'I don't need help from filthy Mudbloods like you,'

Zaria finally stopped to catch her breath. "And she's still mad at him to this day…I'm pretty sure he's over her, since he hasn't apologized since the end of last year. She's always hated Martin and Jake too, for literally no reason! I mean they might pick on some first years from time to time, but who doesn't? That's what I call unfair…I mean, Martin's just so cute-"

"Okay, got it, Zaria. Don't talk to Snape, Avery, or Mulciber while Lily's around."

"Don't talk to Snape at all! He's just rude…I mean you saw how he totally blew you off at dinner for no reason." Zaria scoffed. Sarah smirked then nodded, and they both decided to turn in for the night.

The next morning, Sarah got up early, ready to see what classes at Hogwarts were like. She changed into her robes after taking a shower and curling her hair, and walked down up to the Great Hall for breakfast. She headed toward the Slytherin table, and sat down next to Maggie, whom she'd met the previous night.

"Morning," she greeted her.

"Hi…ugh, don't eat the french toast…it's horrible," Maggie replied.

Sarah appreciated the heads up, and reached for a piece of toast instead. She looked up from putting raspberry jam on it to see Jake, Martin, and Severus sitting down across from them. They all looked half asleep, and Snape still didn't even glance at her as he sat down. She tried to at least make eye contact with him, but couldn't because of his long hair being in the way. Frustrated, she wondered why he wouldn't look at her. Then again, why should she care? If all of Lily's friends were supposed to ignore him anyway, she shouldn't give a damn about him at all.

"Good morning," Jake said groggily, and took his schedule from the Head Boy that was passing them out.

She looked at hers when it was passed over to her. She had potions first. Sarah was suddenly excited about going to classes. Potions was her favorite subject back at Beauxbatons. Sarah had become so occupied looking at her schedule, she barely noticed Zaria sitting down next to her.

"So, what've we got first?" she peered over onto Sarah's schedule, while pouring herself a little coffee. "Potions…That'll be a drag," she sighed. "Slughorn always chooses partners for us like we're in pre-school."

A half hour later, they stepped into a musty classroom back in the dungeons. They took their seats at the desks, and Sarah sat next to Zaria, hoping she would get someone decent as a partner.

The professor strode into the classroom and gave a little speech about how great it was to be back from summer vacation, even though pretty much everyone else in the class was thinking the exact opposite.

As he did roll call, he gradually started moving students to new spots. Zaria got moved to sit by Avery, and Sarah gave her a knowing smile, which was returned. Finally, the teacher said her name, and after it followed, "Malfoy, you can sit in the desk behind you next to Snape."

This time, it wasn't a knowing smile she gave Zaria. It was more of a concerned frown. She sighed and sat down next to Snape, who once again, didn't acknowledge her. Why did it bother her? There were plenty of other guys that looked at her-she caught Mulciber staring at her during breakfast. She chanced a look at him. What was it about him that was so intriguing? Was it the way his hair gently fell onto his skin at just the right angle, the deep brown eyes, or was it the fact that she actually met a guy who didn't lust after her the moment he laid eyes on her.

They began working on that day's potion, and saw him writing little notes in his textbook. "You'll get in trouble when you return it if you write in it," she said.

"That's really none of _your_ business though, isn't it?" He spoke for the first time, and the sound of his deep, matured voice captured her.

"I suppose not," she said carefully. He continued making the potion and scribbled in his book. "Wow, you're pretty good at this…Oh wait! Did you forget the pygmy hairs?"

He turned a deep shade of scarlet. "I would have remembered eventually."

She giggled and gazed at him out of the corner of her eye. 'I'm not falling for him, I'm not falling for him' she told herself. But somewhere in the back of her mind, she swore she heard a sarcastic voice saying, 'Right…you just keep telling yourself that.'


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter 2: Skipping Hogsmeade

After potions, Zaria and Sarah walked into the Great Hall for lunch, and when they were finished, went out to the birch tree by the lake.

"This is where we all usually congregate…" Zaria explained, while Amanda, Lily, and Bridget walked towards them.

"Hey guys," Amanda said.

"Sarah has some exciting news to tell you all," Zaria giggled.

"What is it?" Bridget asked.

Sarah scowled at Zaria. "It's not really exciting…I have to sit by Snape in potions. We're partners."

"Ugh…talk about embarrassing!"

"Don't talk to him Sarah…He's such a jerk," Lily said quietly.

"I know…Zaria filled me in last night after the feast. But I am kind of forced to talk to him…"

Lily shot Zaria a look with her bright green eyes. Sarah would really hate to be Zaria right around then. "Gee, thanks for telling everyone about the whole encounter last year."

Sarah defended her new Slytherin friend. "She only told me because I asked her to, Lily. Don't get mad at her."

"Sure…then how did you know there was even a story to tell?" Lily raised her eyebrows and they all laughed.

"Zaria introduced me to everyone, and he didn't even look at me, so I wondered what his problem was, so she told me." Sarah didn't want to give away the fact that Zaria had been talking to Martin and Jake.

"Oh…so then you already know he's a jerk," Amanda laughed.

"Yep," Sarah said, trying to sound cheerful about it. She checked her Chanel watch. "We better get going…Zaria and I have Defense Against the Dark Arts."

"With the Ravenclaws," Bridget pointed out. "So we can walk together!" They packed up their stuff, and Bridget, Sarah, and Zaria headed to the castle, while Lily and Amanda headed to Herbology for their combined class.

They walked into the Defense Against the Dark Arts classroom and sat down in a nearby set of three desks. A middle-aged witch walked in, and told the class to take their seats a few minutes later.

She cleared her throat and said, "Hello class, I'm Professor Weaver, and I'll be your new Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher. Now today we're going to start off with a pop quiz-" everyone moaned, "-to see what you remember from your previous Defense classes."

"Oh, great…" Sarah said under her breath. Defense Against the Dark Arts was her worst subject.

The professor walked around the class, handing out the tests, and Sarah thought about pretending to be sick or something. Then she could have Zaria or Bridget tell her what was on the test so she could study. Too late: the teacher dropped a large test packet down in front of her.

Sarah watched the clock tick as Weaver told everyone to get started. Forty-five minutes left to go. She hoped she could make it. The first ten questions ended up being easy, but apparently the test got harder as she went farther. She got stuck on number twelve. Her mind went blank, and she couldn't remember anything she'd read over the summer. She filled in the rest of the blanks by guessing. Great…Well maybe she got 11 out of 50 questions correct. Unfortunately, Professor Weaver told them to drop their quills, and she began picking up tests.

She felt miserable and stupid. Sarah always got good marks in all her classes, especially Divination, due to the fact she was a seer on her mother's side. This class was the only exception.

When they walked out of class, Bridget gushed, "Wow, wasn't that quiz easy?"

"Er, no! Defense Against the Dark Arts is my worst subject!" Sarah replied darkly. "The only reason I'm taking it for a course this year is to get a decent job at the Ministry."

"Oh…Well maybe you just learned different things at Beauxbatons," Bridget was embarrassed, Sarah could tell. But she'd definitely gotten the whole 'learning different things' concept right. They hadn't even begun studying Red Caps at her old academy, but on the quiz it said in bold lettering: 'Review from Third Year'.

- September 4, 1976 -

Two days later, Sarah was dreading the return of the quiz grades more than ever. It was time for Defense Against the Dark Arts again, and the class settled into their seats. Professor Weaver made an announcement that she'd give back the tests at the end of the class period. Sarah glanced at the clock every few moments through class and could've sworn it had stopped moving. Nevertheless, class finally ended.

The professor handed out all the tests and said that the students could go once they got theirs.

"See you later," Zaria said, not telling Sarah her grade even though she'd seen a large 'O' scrawled across the paper, standing for 'Outstanding'. Of course, Sarah's was at the bottom of the stack. While everyone was getting their quiz and leaving, she heard Weaver telling Snape to stay after class for something. Sarah wondered what it was, but didn't look at him. She could play his game for a while too.

Finally, everyone had left the class besides her, Snape, and Professor Weaver. Sarah got out of her desk to collect her test. As she had expected, a 'D' for 'Dreadful' was written in red ink. As Professor Weaver opened her mouth, Sarah braced herself for a long-winded pep talk.

"Now, Miss Malfoy…I've seen your O.W.L. grades in Defense Against the Dark Arts from Beauxbatons, and you got an 'E'. What happened here?"

"Well…We hadn't studied any of this yet, to be honest," Sarah sighed, taking the test that was being handed to her.

"That's what I expected. So I took the personal liberty to have someone mentor you until you get caught up-" Sarah thought about this…It wouldn't be too bad. It was probably Zaria who would mentor her, and then she might get away with not studying after all.

"-which is why Severus here has volunteered to mentor you…From what I've heard, he's the best Defense Against the Dark Arts student in the school-"

'Snape mentoring me? Whoa…Rewind. Snape _volunteered_ to help me? Maybe he hasn't been ignoring me after all,' Sarah thought. But this thought was quickly banished when he finally spoke.

"I don't remember volunteering for anything," he said in a cold voice. She looked at him and for the first time saw his face. He, of course, wasn't looking at her, but she did notice his eyes again, which seemed to hold the world's sadness. 'Again…Calm down Sarah,' her mind told her. Why the hell was she thinking about his eyes?

The teacher looked taken aback. "Well I figured you would've just agreed if I'd ask you anyway. No matter! But I want you to meet at least once a week. I don't care where. Okay, well you can go to lunch now."

Sarah was about to argue with the teacher about having a different mentor. Severus looked like he'd rather die than hang out with her. She wondered, in the pit of her stomach, why she was almost happy about this whole thing.

Sarah walked out of the classroom, and into the Great Hall. Zaria was there waiting for her at the Slytherin table.

"Bloody hell, where have you been? And why are you so pale? You look like the Bloody Baron," she laughed.

Sarah laughed too, but it was forced. "I failed that stupid quiz so I have to be mentored by someone. You'll never guess who." She glanced down at the end of the table where Snape was sitting, just to make sure he wasn't listening in, not like he would anyway.

"Who is this oh-so-mysterious mentor?" Zaria asked in fake sarcasm.

"None other than our infamous friend, Severus Snape," Sarah tried to show how pissed she was about the teachers decision-not much-and Zaria's eyebrows raised to the ceiling.

"You're serious?"

"Unfortunately," Sarah groaned. "I have to meet with him once a week."

"You haven't scheduled anything, right?"

"No, and I plan to keep it that way. Maybe then I'll convince Professor Weaver that I need a new mentor."

Her plan didn't necessarily work out though. She was in potions, and her and her lab partner had been working together silently the whole time. He finally said, without glancing at her, "So where are we going to meet?"

Sarah was taken aback. She hadn't really expected him to say anything about it to her. "Um…I guess the common room would work."

"Too noisy," he replied, as he added some beetle eyes to the potion.

"Okay, so why did you even ask for my input if you're just going to shoot down my ideas?"

He ignored her, and said, "I'm sure Weaver would let us use her classroom."

Sarah tried to find a reason why this idea wouldn't work, but couldn't. "Fine. What day?"

"I'm free Saturday."

"What about during the week? Do you have some prior commitment?" she asked sarcastically.

"It's your grade, not mine,"

Sarah sighed. He had a point. "What time?"

"8:00 a.m. sharp." He turned back to the potion.

Sarah, Zaria, Bridget, Amanda, and Lily sat under the birch tree while Sarah told about her conversation with Snape in potions.

"Boy, do I feel bad for you!" Amanda said.

Lily said, "It's beyond me why I was ever friends with him in the first place."

"Yeah, Lily, I've always wanted to know why you were ever friends with that git," Bridget wondered out loud, while doing her Astronomy homework. Sarah found herself wondering if he was really as bad as everyone thought he was. It seemed like they were all overreacting about something that could have just slipped. But perhaps Sarah's view was skewed from reality; hearing the word "mudblood" in the Malfoy home wasn't exactly rare.

Lily sighed while they laughed. "I was like nine, okay? That is a very vulnerable age."

Saturday had come quickly, and it had also happened to be the first trip to Hogsmeade. Zaria and Sarah ate breakfast at the Slytherin table, and Sarah was feeling regretful about not arguing with Snape about when she should study.

"I wish you could come," Zaria sighed.

"I wish I could, too." Of all days, why did he have to choose the one of the first Hogsmeade trip? She'd never been there before, and was excited about hanging out with her new friends in the village. "Well I better get going," Sarah glanced at her watch and it said 7:55.

"See you later…Maybe you'll get done early and be able to meet us all in Hogsmeade."

Sarah got up from the table and walked to the classroom where Severus told her to go. He was there, slouching in a desk, and waiting for her to get there.

"About time," he narrowed his eyes at her, but she could have sworn she saw him smirk.

"Sorry…" She waited for him to say something but couldn't take the silence any longer. "Okay…so what do I have to do?"

"I don't know…Why don't you start by reading chapter one in the book?" he suggested sarcastically. "You had the book list all summer, why wouldn't you start catching up?"

She didn't reach for the book. "Well I didn't know I was so behind…Besides, I was busy all summer. Not that it's any of _your_ business." Sarah quoted his previous words from Potions, and flipped her shimmering blonde hair over her shoulder.

Snape narrowed his eyes at her. "Lucius told me your whole family went on vacation to Aruba last summer. Sounds like you had a real difficulty trying to find free time."

Sarah rolled her eyes in response. "Okay, you're right. I should have caught up over the summer. But I do care about school…and I really want to learn. Plus, the sooner you help me catch up, the sooner these tutoring sessions can be over."

"Fair enough," he shrugged. "Alright, let's start with an easy spell then."

For the next hour and a half, Sarah practiced her disarming spell on Snape. Why did he have to be so damn good at blocking everything her wand shot at him? Sarah casted the spell again and again, and got so worked up that she accidentally flung out of her hand.

Instead of hitting Snape, who ducked at just the right moment, the wand hit a vase in the corner. Time seemed to slow down as it wobbled back and forth, and Sarah breathed a sigh of relief when it balanced itself out once again. She glanced at Snape, who was smirking back at her.

"I think we'll need to work on that spell a little more."

"Probably," Sarah laughed. He grabbed her wand off the floor and handed it to her. Their hands brushed briefly and she felt a wobbly feeling in the stomach which was similar to the motion of the vase just a few seconds earlier. "Thanks," she said, although she could barely breathe. She wondered if he sensed her growing infatuation.

"That's enough for today, I think. I'll see you in Potions."

Sarah nodded, her heart still pounding. He nodded to her as he walked out the door and left her alone in the classroom.


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter 3: Middle Ground

- October, 1976 -

Five weeks into the year at Hogwarts, Sarah began to bond with her new group of friends. She and Zaria became very close because of the secrets Sarah kept for her.

Sarah also met James Potter, Remus Lupin, Peter Pettigrew, and Sirius Black. She knew that her family disowned Sirius some time ago, but she didn't really care. Sarah never got involved with her family's business unless absolutely necessary. Besides, she could be friends with whomever she wanted; there was no one at Hogwarts to tell on her.

Nearly every time Lily was around, the four Gryffindor boys lurked nearby. James' constant attempt to woo Lily became a little annoying after the first few encounters. Also, Sarah didn't like the way he teased Severus every time he walked by with names like "Snivellus" and "greasy git".

'_Come on now, he's not really that bad,_' she always found herself thinking. In fact, the two became somewhat friends through their tutoring sessions and potions partnership. But the friendship never left the classroom…there was no smile, hello, or wave in the halls when they passed each other. But Sarah knew didn't totally hate her at least; she was a person who sought the constant approval of anyone outside her immediate family.

Sarah, Zaria, Amanda, and Lily sat at their usual spot on the front lawn. The trees were changing to their brilliant fall colors all around them. Bridget was the last to join them, because she had to grab a book from the library for an extra credit assignment. Sarah wondered why she bothered; Bridget, the brilliant Ravenclaw, had perfect grades already. They definitely didn't need extra credit.

As Sarah predicted, it took James five minutes to bring his gang over to their spot and sit down next to them. "Hey you guys," Sarah said.

They joked around about some stuff that Sarah didn't pay attention to. She watched as Severus walked out of the castle with Jake and Martin. They sat about a hundred meters away, and Severus didn't really interact with them at all. He just wrote in his potions book while Jake and Martin talked energetically.

"…don't you think, Sarah?" James asked. Everyone in the group looked at her, while she tried to cover up the fact that she was staring at Severus Snape.

"Sorry, I was spacing out…What were you talking about?" 

"Just Snivellus...I guess you know him better than any of us. You spend a lot of time with him…He's quite the git, don't you think?" He looked at her pointedly, as though he knew who she was just staring at.

She tried to make her next words as convincing as possible. "Obviously…I'm probably going to fail Defense Against the Dark Arts still. Speaking of, I have to go meet him soon. Just kill me now."

They laughed. Sirius said, "You know, for a Malfoy you aren't half bad."

"Thanks," she smiled, enjoying her popularity. Sarah saw Severus get up and walk into the castle once more. She got up to follow him. "See you guys later."

"Have fun," Amanda said mockingly.

The two met in their usual deserted spot: Professor Weaver's classroom. "Hey Severus," Sarah sighed as she walked in the room. She had come a long way from their first tutoring session; she could finally disarm Severus at least. He was sitting at a desk, and didn't get up when she walked in. She figured they were doing some textbook exercise that day or something, so she sat down in the chair next to him.

"Tell me something, how is it that one from the Malfoy family becomes friends with people from every house, the majority of them Gryffindors?" Sarah swore she could hear a passive aggressive tone in his normally icy voice.

"I'm not big on Malfoy family pride. It's hard to explain, long story. I'd really appreciate it if you didn't tell my brother, though. That could be slightly problematic," she said carefully.

"It's not my business to tell. I just thought it curious that you're so unlike your brother."

"Is it a good thing or bad thing. To you, I mean?" she wasn't sure if asking Severus this was the best idea, but she was genuinely curious.

"Probably a bad thing, if it means hanging out with Potter and Black." Sarah noticed the way he said their names with incredible disdain. She couldn't blame him though; if they made fun of her as bad as they did Severus, she would hate them too.

"I can see where you're coming from. I don't think they really loathe you, though. It's just something James does to impress Lily, and Sirius joins in to impress James. That doesn't mean it's right, of course. I don't think you're as bad as they say, anyways."

- Snape's POV -

Severus was shocked to hear what just came from her mouth. In all their tutoring sessions and in potions, he thought she was simply being kind to make things bearable. But here was someone who didn't completely worship Potter. Amazed, he took in her beauty once again. Long blonde hair draped to her breasts. Her eyes resembled the water of the deepest ocean.

Her clumsy, though sometimes poised nature both entertained and entranced him. She was adorable. Her laugh was the sound of love. Severus was vaguely aware of his growing feelings. Today, he felt the full bloom of love inside him. He wondered how he could fall for someone so quickly, especially someone who was somewhat friends with the Gryffindor snobs he loathed so greatly.

"And what makes you think I'm not as bad as they say?" he smirked.

She leaned closer, voice just above a whisper. "Well, anyone with the patience to teach me Defense Against the Dark Arts can't be all bad." His heart stopped as she leaned in even closer and kissed him. He didn't really know what he was doing; it was his first kiss and all. But the feelings in his stomach were unmistakable.

He touched her porcelain face and hair like silk. Their kiss continued, adding tongue and her small arms wrapped around his neck. But it seemed too good to be true. Severus broke the kiss, and she smiled. He couldn't fight the feeling of paranoia; what if the whole thing was just a prank thought up by Potter, Black, Lupin, and Pettigrew?

He realized he couldn't trust her…where did her true allegiance lie? With Slytherin and her family, or with her new Gryffindor friends? He didn't understand how it could be both.

- Sarah's POV -

She couldn't believe what she just did; she didn't even think about it before her lips were on his. And now she had a problem…there was no way she could tell anyone and risk her newfound popularity. When she glanced up at Severus, she hoped to see a smile or some expression of happiness. Instead, she saw a mix of sadness and anger.

"I'm sorry. That was too forward wasn't it?" Sarah asked slowly.

"I'm just wondering why," he replied.

Sarah sighed. '_Here comes the confession,_' she thought. "I've really grown to like you Severus. If you don't feel the same, I totally understand. I hope things won't be too awkward between us from now on. I'm fine with just being friends if that's all you want."

He stared at her for a few moments, and she knew he was trying to read her. Sarah was one to write her emotions all over her face, so she imagined it wouldn't be too hard for him. "I believe you," he said slowly. "I'm still confused, though."

"My situation is getting a little confusing." Sarah bit her lip. "I don't know if I can tell my friends about this…at least not yet."

"I can keep a secret," Severus said. This time, he was the one to kiss her. Sarah couldn't believe what had happened. She officially had a "thing" with her friends' worst enemy. Although nervous feelings ate at her insides, she couldn't help but feel euphoria at the second touch of his lips to hers. It just felt _right_. Sure, she snogged plenty of guys. But nothing felt as pure as the two kisses she just experienced.

Suddenly, she realized that her Defense Against the Dark Arts skills wouldn't be improving at the same rate as before. Severus seemed to be thinking the same. When their kiss broke once more, he said, "We'll practice a complex spell next time. Try and read Chapter 3 if you have a chance this week."

"I like Potions so much better. It's a science, like baking," Sarah sighed. "And we're the best Potions team ever." She was referencing their success in the class. They were Slughorn's golden students, never missing a beat in each potion the class attempted. "But without me, you'd forget half the Potion," she teased. He always seemed to forget something, just like the first day with the pygmy hairs.

"You're more like the distraction that prevents me from focusing." Sarah frowned and he added, "I meant that as a compliment. We do make a good team, you're right."

They talked for the remainder of the hour about nothing. She asked about his family, he asked about her privileged life. The second topic made her a bit uneasy…she was spoiled, that much was true. But she didn't really like talking about the Malfoy family wealth with anyone. She left the flaunting to her socialite mother the majority of the time.

The fact that Severus didn't come from a wealthy family made Sarah like him even more. She was so used to her mother trying to set her up with the large-inheritance-bound sons of her father's coworkers, and they all turned out to be gits.

Eventually, the pair had to go back to the common room so Sarah could meet up with Zaria. They walked to the door together. She reached out to grab the handle, but stopped herself. Sarah really didn't want the hour to end.

Severus pressed her against the door as soon as she turned around, and kissed her one last time. It was more awkward standing up- he was nearly a foot taller than she was, but the kiss remained entirely pleasant. "Keeping this a secret will be more difficult than I thought originally," he said as their lips parted.

"Just give me some time…I can tell them all eventually, but not yet."

Their hands brushed one last time as she left the room with him. They walked back to the common room, side by side, in complete silence so as to not attract any attention. Zaria was standing right by the entryway when they returned.

"About time…Ready to tackle this Muggle Studies essay?" Zaria crossed her arms impatiently.

"I guess," Sarah groaned. "I'm so tired of school work. We partied at Beauxbaton's the majority of the time…this is all a bit of a shock to me."

"Well, you'll get the hang of it." They grabbed some ink, quills, and parchment from the dormitories, and settled into the common room couches.

"So, who did you choose for your Muggle artist?" Zaria asked. Their essay was somewhat easy…all they had to do was choose a famous Muggle musician and explain how they affected the Muggle world.

"The Beatles," said Sarah. She was already such a fan of their music, and knew almost everything about them, so the essay would be a breeze. Of course, all of her knowledge of the Muggle world was a secret to her family.

The earlier encounter with Severus kept eating away at Sarah. She really needed to tell someone, and Zaria seemed like the best bet. But they hadn't been friends for too long…what if she went and told Amanda and everyone else? Then again, Sarah already knew about Zaria's potential fling with Martin, whom the rest of their friends also disliked.

Sarah took a deep breath, and looked around the common room once more to make sure it was empty. Then she spoke: "Zaria, I have to tell you something. But you have to swear not to tell _anyone_. Not even Amanda."


	4. Chapter 4

Chapter 4: Running Out of Time

Zaria took off her chic black glasses, folded them, and placed them in her lap. "Sarah, you can trust me with anything."

She took another deep breath and told Zaria everything, but the shocked reaction that Sarah expected never came. Instead, Zaria laughed a bit and said: "Martin and I have been dating for a week now, secretly of course. I was dying to tell someone…I'm glad you have a similar dilemma."

Now they were both laughing, just from the shock of coincidence. "Any ideas on how to tell the others?"

Zaria rolled her eyes. "I don't even know how to tell my _sister_. Amanda's in Hufflepuff, Sarah. It's not like she's really tolerant of Martin's pureblood behavior most of the time."

"True." Sarah didn't know if her family would even like to hear about it either. Although Severus was a Slytherin and that counted for something, he was a half-blood and not well to do. Sarah also realized that _anyone_ she liked would never be up to her parents' high standards.

"Well we'll figure it out eventually."

- November, 1976 -

A month later, they _still_ hadn't figured things out. The secrets grew in their own ways, though. Zaria became the sister that Sarah never had. They passed knowing looks to each other whenever their love interests were near, or whenever their friends made snarky comments that tried their patience. More importantly, they worked as a team to keep everything a secret.

Another cause of stress was added to the equation by their Gryffindor friends, because Lily and James were now dating officially. The fact that they were now a power couple made each of them even harder to stand up to. When the whole group was together, Sarah felt a tension as thick as an iceberg forming between them. Every disdainful remark they made towards Severus, Martin, or any other Slytherin seemed like an immediate stab in the back.

Severus was also growing restless. Their very last tutoring session had arrived, since Professor Weaver decided Sarah didn't require his help any longer. Sarah suspected that the professor knew something was going on between them, and didn't want them using the empty classroom for any possible frivolity.

- Severus' POV -

Severus was suffering with the current situation. Sometimes their hands brushed during Potions and he made a sad smile to himself. He was the happiest he had ever been, but it was all so bittersweet. He hated the reserved nature of their relationship; Severus wanted to kiss her when he wanted to, or put his arm around her in the hall. One hour a week to do all of that was simply torture.

He was so proud of her- she came a long way in a short time in terms of her knowledge of Defense Against the Dark Arts. Severus' first impression of her as a snobby airhead couldn't be farther from the truth. He felt such consuming, overpowering love for this girl; it was something he thought to be impossible after things with Lily ended so badly. But the feelings he once felt for his childhood friend faded to the background; he didn't even feel jealous when Potter and Lily went public with their relationship. Well, maybe he was a little jealous, just because they _could_ go public. It was time to move on from his childhood, but Severus couldn't have chosen a more inconvenient person to do such a thing with. Their situation faced several obstacles on a daily basis. Controlling himself around Sarah was just one.

Together, they sat in the Defense Against the Dark Arts classroom, alone for the last time. Ever since the fateful day of their first kiss, Severus couldn't look at the room in the same way. The subject was always his favorite, but the classroom became an obsession of his in its own right. Sometimes he went there alone throughout the week to work on other assignments, or just to escape the pestering, immature youths surrounding him. It was his sanctuary in many ways. Even during class, when it was full of other students gossiping and bickering, he imagined they all disappeared to leave just Severus and Sarah.

Today, she wore Muggle clothes. Jeans hugged her curves spectacularly; he ran a hand over her hip and kissed her as soon as she walked in the door and set down her purse. "I've missed you," he said into her hair as they hugged.

He held her tightly, and thought he'd just refuse to let go if she asked. Of course, she didn't. "I missed you too Severus."

Hearing his name leave her delicate mouth was pleasure in and of itself. He felt her long neck and kissed it. Then he sat down and pulled her into his lap; at 5'1", she was easy to maneuver. Severus loved how strong she made him feel.

Just when everything was heating up, she cooled things down by saying, "I don't know what we're going to do after today."

Severus, turned on and not wanting to waste a single second of their time, kissed her collarbone and said, "Let's worry about that later and enjoy things while we can."

For the next forty minutes, sublime passion was the only thing on their minds. But it didn't take long before Severus began to worry again. What if she decided their relationship wasn't worth waiting for anymore, after this last tutoring session finished and they couldn't be together? He wished things were as easy for them as they were for Potter and Lily, who constantly flaunted their seemingly perfect relationship. It just wasn't fair.

"Severus, will you wait for me?" They always seemed to be on the same page.

He held her, breathing in her sweet scent of vanilla mixed with raspberries, and leaned down to kiss her nose. "I'll wait as long as it takes."

- Sarah's POV -

Sarah was close to tears as their last minutes ticked away. Sarah never dreamed she could feel so strongly about one person in such a short period of time. She had no idea what was going to happen, or when she'd finally be able to tell Lily, James, Amanda, Sirius, Remus, Peter, and Bridget. Even thinking about it sent a billion knots to her stomach.

The Christmas break coming up was her only consolation. She figured she could at least tell her parents. Severus was a Slytherin, so they would have to approve. Sarah decided that even if they didn't, she wouldn't care anyways.

She didn't know how her friends became so much more important to her than her own family. Perhaps it was because they seemed to place their Death Eater business above everything else, and only cared about power. There was a lot about the Death Eaters that she didn't understand…for one, all the senseless murders of Muggleborn wizards and witches. What's the point of taking over the world if no one is left in it?

Her mind snapped back to reality when there was a knock at the door. She jumped out of Severus' lap and whipped out her wand, pretending she was about to practice a spell. The door opened a bit, and Zaria poked her head in. "Hope I'm not interrupting anything," she began quietly, smirking a bit as Sarah let out a sigh of relief. "Just thought I'd let you know that I told the others you won't be joining us in Hogsmeade today because you have a letter to write to your parents. They understood."

Sarah was thankful for the cover-up that bought her and Severus more time. "Thanks Zaria."

"Oh, and I'm supposedly helping you with the letter," She winked. "Don't get too out of control." Then she shut the door once again. Sarah laughed. That meant that Zaria was probably going to sneak around with Martin somewhere too.

"Well, that was a surprise." Severus looked pale. Of course, he knew that Sarah told Zaria and that she and Martin had a secret relationship too, but he didn't know that she was so actively promoting it.

"A very nice surprise."

Severus waved his wand and said a few incantations that Sarah had never heard before. Suddenly, a brown couch appeared in the empty corner of the room. "There, now we can sit on something a bit more comfortable."

"Wow!" Sarah couldn't believe all the magic he could do. "They never taught us anything useful at Beauxbaton's. All I learned was the French language and really basic magic…"

He led her over to the couch and they both lay down to face each other. "Tell me about Beauxbaton's," he said in his usual cool and calm voice.

"Honestly, it was more of learning magic for housework than anything else. My parents wanted me to come to Hogwarts to learn "real" magic…my mother said: 'We have an elf to do chores for us. There's no need for you to bewitch the dishes. It's a waste of your time.' I'm not sure why they sent me there in the first place; my only guess is that their school was a little more luxurious than Hogwarts, so I'm sure my parents bought into that as a symbol for the educational quality."

He nodded. Sometimes, Sarah liked the fact that he wasn't one for words. It always allowed her to speak her mind. "Well I'm glad you're here now," he said

"Me too," she smiled. "I haven't been this happy in a long time. You'll come to my house for Christmas, won't you?"

"I'm not sure that meeting your parents now would be the best idea," Severus said with a slight frown.

"It'll be fine. Besides, Lucius likes you…and the same can't be said for the majority of people we know. My dad doesn't care about who I date, so my mom's really the only person to remotely worry about. Even if she doesn't like you, she'll be polite. Wouldn't want to be improper…"

"Was that supposed to be reassuring?" He smirked and tucked a few strands of hair behind her ear.

She shrugged. "I tried."

Back to kissing. Sarah relished his clumsy inexperience. She didn't know why, but it made her feel special. The first boy she kissed was the most popular guy in school, and had already had dozens of girlfriends. Sarah was just another in his long line of flings, but she didn't see the faux nature of the relationship until its end. He meant everything to her, and she gave him her first kiss. Now, kissing Severus, all she wanted to do was to give him her first kiss instead. She wanted to relearn all over again.

"I should go," she whispered. "I don't know if they'll believe I took two hours to write a letter, but I think any longer is pushing it a bit too far."

"Probably." They got off the couch and he made it disappear. Slowly, they kissed one last time. She fought the urge to say that she loved him, thinking it would come across as too forward. They had only been dating for a month, after all.

"Well good luck telling Potter and the rest of them. I'll see you in Potions."

"Okay," she said. She died a little inside when she walked to the door to leave, turned around one last time, and saw overpowering sadness in his dark eyes. Sarah forced herself to turn away and open the door, but she couldn't forget that look.

She decided she could never forgive herself if she made him that sad again, and vowed to seriously begin thinking of how to phrase her confession to the others. Sarah loved him deeply, and knew they both couldn't survive as secret much longer. Their attraction to each other was simply too powerful to fight. Sarah knew she would have to choose between friends and love very soon. The sick, nervous feeling she felt lately reappeared in her stomach. Things would never be the same once she told everyone, but she knew it would all be worth it in the end.


	5. Chapter 5

A/N: Sorry for the late chapter. My Grandpa passed away so I couldn't write as much as I would otherwise, since I've been dealing with family, etc. Anyways, here it is:

Chapter 5: End of an Era

- December, 1976 -

Things were not getting easier for Sarah and Severus. Every day that they were forced to spend apart was torture. Their whispers in Potions were Sarah's only consolation.

"I'll write you as soon as I get home so we can make arrangements for you to come over," she said in a hushed voice, during their last class before Winter Break.

"Right," he sounded somewhat excited, but she knew a lot was weighing on him also. She knew being with her family would be a bit stressful for him, especially when they were so used to being secretive.

But that was all about to change. She and Zaria had been talking about it, and they were determined to tell their friends before Christmas vacation. What better time to break the bad news than before a two week break? Perhaps the two weeks would warrant a change in their perspectives. That's what Sarah hoped for, at least.

Sarah tied her hair in a ponytail as they began their Potion. As usual, they leaned in as close to each other as they could while brewing it, pretending they were both equally entranced by the steaming, green goo inside. The simple act of their shoulders touching still sent a fire through both of them.

Her stomach was in knots after class ended and she saw James and Sirius in the hall. "Hey Sarah!"

She waited for them to catch up with her, and Zaria stayed back too. "So what are you guys planning to do on Christmas break?"

"Mostly family stuff...We have the annual Malfoy Christmas party, of course." 

Zaria sighed. "I think we're going on vacation somewhere. Hopefully it's warm there. How about you guys?"

"We're going to be causing havoc at James' house, of course," Sirius said with his usual mischievous grin. "You both should stop over, if you can."

Sarah sighed. "I doubt that will be possible…" In her mind, she added: '_And I doubt you'll still want me to after what Zaria and I have to tell you._'

The wintry air bit goose-bumps into their skins as nearly all the students of Hogwarts waited to board the Hogwarts Express that would take them home to their families. As usual, Sarah's entire group of friends sat in the same compartment. It was a bit of a tight squeeze, so Lily ended up on James' lap…big surprise.

They were still waiting for the train to get heated, but Sarah had a fever from worry. The other friends kept making jokes and acting rowdy, but Sarah and Zaria kept making nervous glances at each other. An hour away from the London station, Severus, along with Jake and Martin, walked by, and James just couldn't resist, and directed some stupid insult toward them all.

Although James' shout could be heard throughout their entire car of the train, Severus pretended not to hear and continued to walk away, Jake and Martin in tow.

Sarah couldn't stand it anymore. "They aren't as bad as you think!"

They all looked taken aback. "Excuse me?" Lily asked, her eyes becoming slits of emeralds as she narrowed them. It was entirely silent for a few moments. Clearly, Lily was challenging her to see if Sarah would really speak her mind.

"You heard me. Severus let one thing slip last year and you can't even find it in you to forgive him. I don't understand how you can do that, but still manage to be friends with me. It's not as though my family is the most innocent- what he called you is common terminology at my house," Sarah snapped.

The entire compartment was still shocked. Lily was the only one who could manage to say anything. "Well I was under the impression that you were different." 

"I am. It's not like I approve of what my family thinks. But if it slipped, I think it's forgivable."

"Why don't you mind your own business, Malfoy. It's not like you were here last year. You didn't see any of it," James said slowly.

"Well from what I heard, if you would just leave Severus alone, the whole situation would have been averted in the first place. But no, you just wanted some extra attention, as per usual." Sarah was getting a little bitchy.

Zaria interjected before anyone could say anything else. "Sarah wasn't here then, but I was. And I agree with her. Lily, you took things way too far…Severus didn't even mean it. We have something else to tell you too." She paused and looked at Sarah. "I'm dating Martin, and Sarah's dating Severus."

Everyone was silent for a few moments. Lily's face was bright red with anger, which clashed with her hair rather badly. Amanda looked horrified at her sister. Behind her glasses, Bridget's eyes were wide. Sirius, James, Remus, and Peter simply looked shocked too.

"I can't believe you two would sink so low." Lily shook her head.

"You can think whatever you want. But we're leaving." Zaria stood and opened the compartment door.

Before slamming it behind them, Sarah heard Remus say, "Don't you think that was a little harsh?"

She never heard anyone's response. "Thanks Zaria," she said as they walked down the hall in search for their Slytherin friends.

They had to walk to nearly the other end of the train before finally reaching their compartment. The three boys looked confused at first, but quickly realized what must have happened. Sarah fell into the seat, relieved but depressed all the same. She kind of hoped Lily would understand. Or _try_ to understand. Maybe it was all just too much to ask.

"So…you did it then? Does that mean I can finally stop hearing these two stress out about it?" Jake looked sullen as usual.

"Yeah, we told them," Sarah said.

"How did it go?" Martin asked.

"That's kind of a dumb question, Martin," Zaria snapped. "Sorry. I'm just stressed. But it's over, so that's all that matters."

Severus put an arm around Sarah, and it felt amazing to her. She saw him smirk out of the corner of her eye as she leaned her head against his shoulder. "I'm glad you finally got it over with," he said.

"Me too." At least the knots in her stomach were gone, although she was sad about the lost friendships that would come as a result. She also figured she had it better than Zaria, who had to deal with Amanda for the rest of Christmas Break.

Apparently, Zaria's mind was along the same lines. "I might have to take you up on that offer to stay at your house."

"That's fine, you can come over whenever. My parents won't care if you do." Sarah kissed Severus' cheek. "When are you coming dear?"

"Probably later today…Mum and I don't usually participate in the 'normal' festivities."

Sarah could tell he was excited by their newfound freedom. In several ways, she was too. It was nice to enjoy the simple freedom of holding his hand whenever she wanted to.

The city began to spring up around them and the train slowly came to a stop at Platform 9 ¾. They got off the train, and Sarah saw her ex-friends getting off on the other end. Sarah waited until Lily was looking directly at her before she kissed Severus goodbye, and she knew Zaria would be doing the same. "See you later today," Sarah said with a smile.

Her mother was waiting for her at the train station, along with their house elf. As usual, the head of the socialites, Evie Malfoy, was dressed impeccably. "Good to see you dear." Sarah's mother kissed both of her cheeks and ordered the house elf to apparate the suitcases back to the manor. "How's Hogwarts so far?"

"I'm learning a lot, I've made some friends in Slytherin, and I have a boyfriend."

"Oh, a boy!" Sarah wasn't sure why Evie sounded so surprised…she had brought previous boyfriends home several times before. "A good Slytherin lad I expect?"

"Yes, mum." Sarah smiled, fighting the urge to roll her eyes. "I invited him to stay over for Christmas Break, I hope that's alright."

"As long as you don't sleep in the same room." Evie eyed Sarah warily, as they both remembered the time that she walked in on Sarah and a different boyfriend snogging.

Then, they decided to apparate back to the Malfoy Manor. Sarah had missed her old home while at Hogwarts; her giant, comfy bed awaited her return. It looked even more elegant in the winter, with snow like vanilla icing on top of the wrought-iron front gate (which opened for them as soon as they appeared).

Sarah hugged her black trench coat tightly around her as they began the long walk to the house. "Your father's at work of course, but Lucius and Narcissa are here."

She never knew which "work" Evie meant: the Ministry cover job or the Death Eater tasks. Most of the time, she didn't want to think about it. When her father was at home, she pretended with all her might that he wasn't the murderer she knew he was. Power comes with the price, and the Malfoy's seemed to want power more than anything and were willing to pay such a price.

To Sarah, it was foolish thinking. They were already wealthy, so what more power did they really need? Being associated with the Dark Lord was just another potential way to tarnish their reputation in her opinion. But what reason did they have to listen to her, especially when she didn't bother to speak her mind?

Finally, they reached the front doors. Lucius and Narcissa welcomed them into a house warmed by a dozen fireplaces, and Sarah felt better immediately. She looked around at all the immaculate fixtures and paintings that existed in the house since her childhood. She was home, finally.

After moving to the living room to sit down, Narcissa bombarded her with questions about going to school at Hogwarts. Sarah thought the girl was extremely annoying: a wannabe socialite at best. Still, she learned to hold her tongue and bear the annoyance of her brother's choice in mate.

She told them about Severus, leaving out the parts about her ex-friends. There was no way she could tell her family that she was friends with anyone in Gryffindor or Hufflepuff, anyways. Perhaps it was better that she was no longer friends with them; things would be much simpler from then on. Sarah's personal house elf, Reina, brought out Sarah's favorite chai tea.

Lucius seemed somewhat pleased with the news that Sarah was dating Severus, but was still surprised. "I thought you would have favored Mulciber. But Severus is a good guy too."

It became very clear to Sarah that the word "good" is relative in meaning. To her Malfoy kin, "good" most likely meant: "good Death Eater material". Even if Severus did become one, she'd live with it. It wasn't as though she hadn't lived with it her whole life already Plus, Lucius just joined up too. She could tell by the way he rarely moved one of his arms, as though it stung each time he did. The Dark Mark must have been fresh on his nearly translucent skin.

Sarah thought the Mark looked dreadful. Couldn't they find a more appealing tattoo, or something a little less noticeable?

Every time Narcissa asked a question, she leaned in as though she were about to tell Sarah some taboo secret. Lucius, content with making an occasional snarky comment, didn't help the situation by quietly drinking his tea.

Before she could say anything else, Sarah cut Narcissa off. "I think Severus is supposed to get here soon. I better check a few of the guest rooms to make sure they're clean." She sped away from the table and hopped up the long flight of gray marble stairs. Reina appeared in one of the guest rooms just as Sarah began cleaning. Right on time too, because the doorbell rang, and Sarah knew it could be Severus. 

"Just keep cleaning, Reina. Thank you!"

Skipping down the stairs, Sarah couldn't wait to see her boyfriend's face once more. It felt good to be official, finally. She opened the door. It wasn't Severus, but it was someone else who could make her heart melt just as quickly.


	6. Chapter 6

A/N: Thanks to everyone who favorited/added an alert to/reviewed "Head Over Heels In Love?". I really appreciate the positive encouragement! Just so you know, my inbox is _always_ open to ideas for "filler" chapters that act as a break from the main plot.

Chapter 6: Christmas at the Malfoy Manor

Oh and her heart did melt. All of the bad thoughts about her family faded away as a tall, blonde figure walked through the door. "Daddy!"

She was such a daddy's girl. He spoiled her so much as a child and left her mother to do all of the real parenting. When he was home, Sarah found that she could look past the Death Eater exterior, and past the mask of his pureblood supremacist nature.

"Hello my love." He leaned down to kiss her forehead and held out her favorite candy, Fizzing Whizbees, in his hand. Although she was sixteen, she still basked in this childhood delight. "How's Hogwarts?"

"It's okay. My boyfriend should be coming over soon for the holidays," she smiled.

"Good, good. Let's hope Lucius and Narcissa don't scare him away," he joked. She loved the fact that he didn't immediately ask if he was in Slytherin, although he was probably thinking it anyways. Sarah looked at her father, Abraxas Malfoy, very closely. Her towered above her (and just about everyone else in their family), wore plain black glasses, and had a good-natured face. If Sarah didn't know any better, she would never guess that he was a Death Eater or even a Slytherin, which was perhaps how the Malfoy name remained untarnished for so long. At home, he was her hero; someone who would never even harm an animal, much less a human.

Abraxas went in to greet Lucius and Narcissa in the dining room, while Sarah went back upstairs to help Reina clean. After everything she learned at Beauxbaton's in terms of house cleaning, it seemed a shame not to use it. Of course, whenever her family walked upstairs, she had to pretend she was doing something else. They would never approve of Sarah helping a house elf.

They were working on the drawing room with the vaulted ceilings. Snow fell delicately outside as the sky became darker. Sarah realized that Severus probably wasn't going to come that night, but hoped he would be over for breakfast. They finished cleaning, and Sarah went to her room to change out of her robes into a pair of pajama pants and a tight gray t-shirt. Then, she headed down to the kitchen to grab a snack of chocolate mint cookies.

At exactly 10:00 that night, the doorbell rang. Sarah doubted it would be Severus, but went to the door anyways. To her surprise, she was wrong; it was him!

- Severus' POV -

"Sorry for coming so late," Severus said after she hugged him and kissed his icy cheek. He didn't add that it was because his mother didn't believe he was going to the Malfoy Manor; nor did she believe that he was _dating_ Sarah Malfoy. How embarrassing.

"Oh, no problem. Here, come in from the cold," she beckoned him inside to the warmth of a dozen fireplaces. Apparently, she didn't realize what she was wearing before, because she added, "Wow, I'm sorry for my appearance," and turned bright red.

"You don't need to apologize, you always look amazing." He leaned down and kissed her softly, but pushed himself away as soon as he heard someone enter the room.

"Well, well. If it isn't Severus Snape. Kissing my sister." Lucius and Narcissa walked into the room. He extended a hand.

"Oh shut it, Lucius," Sarah said with an added eye-roll.

"Lucius," Severus said with a nod, while shaking his hand. He greeted Narcissa in the same manor, and Lucius told a lingering house elf to take Severus' trunk upstairs to the room he would be staying in.

"Mum and Dad already went to bed. They always sleep so early," Sarah explained as they walked up the black marble staircase. She pointed to a door at the end of the hall and told him that it was her room. Then, she opened a door that was a few rooms away from hers and told him that he could stay in that room or choose a different one.

It was exquisite. There was a charm placed on the room so it would seem smaller from the outside and then open up to several rooms on the inside. What was supposed to be Severus' "room" ended up as an apartment. It featured a kitchenette, bathroom, and bedroom, all with top-of-the-line furnishings. It had an elegant gothic feel. And it was bigger than his entire house. "How do you need this much space?" he wondered aloud.

"Well things get pretty crazy around the holidays," Sarah explained. "You'll see. We have a bunch of relatives that end up too drunk to leave on nearly every occasion. So, will this room be okay?"

"I feel as though I should be paying you for rent. But other than that, yes, the room is spectacular." He smirked, although he felt strange in the midst of one of the wealthiest homes in Britain.

"Good," Sarah smiled. "I think I'll need to go to bed. I'm so used to going to bed and waking up early for Hogwarts classes. I'm completely exhausted. But make yourself at home. I'll see you tomorrow." He nodded his understanding and gave her a sweet goodnight kiss.

- December 25, 1976 -

The days since Severus arrived were filled with lounging around, mostly. Sarah was very busy helping her mother prepare for the Christmas party, which was going to start later that night. He was nervous to meet the rest of her family, but at least the parents were out of the way.

The Malfoy Manor was entirely decorated with gold, silver, green, and red. Sarah invited him to see the enormous ballroom, and it was magnificent. The ceiling was bewitched like the one above the Great Hall at Hogwarts so it looked like it was snowing inside.

- Sarah's POV -

Thank Merlin's beard she was done decorating. If she would have wasted any more time, Sarah wouldn't have been able to get dressed up for the night. After giving Severus some dress robes to wear for the night since he didn't have any, she hopped in her shower and began her long list of things she had to do. She shaved her legs, plucked her eyebrows, and started putting on makeup. The order went: foundation, eyeliner, mascara, blush, finishing powder, lipstick. Doing her hair came next, and she blew it dry before curling in some soft waves. She changed into the short, red designer gown her mum bought her for the occasion. Two hours after she first entered the shower, she was finally ready.

Severus looked bored, though handsome, when she went downstairs. "You look wonderful. But could you have taken any longer?"

She said "thank you", and was about to reply with quick wit to his second comment when the doorbell rang. The first guests to arrive were Evie Malfoy's sister and her two kids, Sarah's cousins. They were a bit younger than Sarah, and infinitely brattier. She couldn't stand to be around them very long and didn't this Severus would either, so she steered him toward the ballroom as her mum greeted the guests.

"This will be one hell of a night," she said, already sighing. "I wish you didn't have to meet my whole family."

"They aren't that bad, Sarah." He rested an arm around her, probably in an attempt to get her to relax. Her family's social functions always made her a bit anxious.

The ballroom's silence grew to a buzz with classical music in the background as more families arrived. Sarah saw Bellatrix, Narcissa's sister, and her husband Rodolphus, the rest of the Black Family (minus Sirius), and the entire Rosier family. Even from Sarah and Severus' spot at a table outside of the main hub, she could still hear the wisps of gossip flittering through the air.

There was talk of Andromeda, Narcissa's sister who was recently disowned for marrying a muggleborn. Evie spread the same gossip that the ladies who drank tea with her each Wednesday told her. A few people mentioned the fact that Sarah had a boyfriend, and more of them were surprised not to recognize the last name. They didn't ask her if he was a pureblood, but she could feel their doubts and instantly felt more anxious. Would Sarah be the next Andromeda? She certainly hoped not. Then again, half-blood wasn't too bad…the muggleborn were the ones her family truly looked down upon.

"Well, aren't you two the lively bunch," Lucius said as he strolled over to the table. "Get up and dance or something. You make me depressed just looking at you."

"I'm not one to dance, and I doubt Severus is either. Besides, the real fun will begin soon. I just saw Aunt Blair take a few shots…We're just waiting for the entertainment to come to us, Lucius." Sarah smiled.

"Fair enough," he winked at them and walked away, pulling Narcissa off to the dance floor.

Sarah had two glasses of champagne while waiting for everyone else to get drunk and start doing things they would regret later. At the last wedding the family went to, Sarah's grandma got drunk and started hitting on the groom. She hoped something like that would happen again. When one of their house elves extended a third glass to her and she took it, Severus stopped her and put it back on the tray. "I think you've had enough tonight. Keep going and you won't be laughing at your relatives, you'll be joining them. And I don't think your parents would appreciate it if I didn't try to prevent you from getting drunk."

"Oh, they don't care." She giggled for a long time, an effect from the special, magical type of champagne the Malfoy's presented at their parties.

It didn't take much longer for the party to get a little wilder. Sarah saw aristocrats with break their expensive high heels several times. She asked Severus if he wanted to go upstairs for a while, and he agreed. On the way out, Sarah saw her father and a few of his Ministry friends admiring an abstract painting on the wall. Abraxas, clearly drunk also, seemed to be telling them the deeper meaning behind it. Sarah giggled again and tugged on Severus' hand as they left.

They went to Severus' room first, and found five of Lucius' friends passed out on the floor, with five half-empty bottles of bewitched champagne scattered around them. It smelled horrible, and Sarah said, "It looks like you're sleeping in my room tonight. That is, if no one decided to pass out there."

As she predicted, no one was there. Before the party, she put a lock jinx on her door so that the guests couldn't simply use her room to have sex or throw up in after too many drinks. She locked the door behind them and took off her dress, deciding to sleep in just her lingerie. Sarah felt Severus' eyes roam around her half-naked body as she untied his tie for him. She crawled in bed and waited for him to join her as he stripped off the rest his clothes to just his boxers.

The couple cuddled under her mess of blankets for a long time before he said anything. Sarah rolled over to face him and smiled in the dark. Malfoy parties were always awesome, but this one topped them all in her book. She felt his face and kissed him, and he held her small waist.

"Tonight wasn't as bad as I thought it might be. No offense." He kissed her lips, and she could feel him shaking. She was about to ask what was wrong, or if he was nervous about something when he added: "I love you, Sarah."


End file.
